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Oklahoma rehab Narconon Arrowhead offers help to neighboring state Texas to prevent further deaths.

Canadian, Oklahoma (PRWEB)July 05, 2012

The classic image of Texas doing everything in a bigger way is unfortunately applicable to the substance abuse and addiction problem in the state. In the Dallas area and in Texas overall, there were higher rates of admission to drug rehabs for marijuana, prescription painkillers, crack cocaine and methamphetamine than the rest of the country, as noted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

In particular, marijuana and methamphetamine figures were far higher for Dallas than the US in general. Along the border with Mexico, however, the problems are more likely to be with powder cocaine, marijuana and heroin.

Houston has the dubious distinction of a “cocktail” of drugs named after it. The “Houston cocktail” is a combination of hydrocodone, Xanax and Soma. Hydrocodone is the main painkilling ingredient in Vicodin, Lortab and many other formulas. Xanax, the well-known and often-abused anti-anxiety drug, is in the benzodiazepine class. And Soma is known generically as carisoprodol. It’s a muscle relaxer. As reported by the Houston Chronicle, together, these three drugs are said to provide a “high” similar to that of heroin.

Difficulty or shallow breathing is a side effect or symptom of overdose for all three of these drugs. Thus this combination can kill by preventing a person from getting enough oxygen.

In 2008, nearly 4,000 people rushed to Houston’s emergency rooms to get help for their problems with prescription pain medication. But less than ten percent of them were referred to treatment, despite the fact that they had just nearly killed themselves from substance abuse.

Choosing Addiction or Choosing Life

One of the major problems with a combination of prescription drugs like the Houston cocktail is the difficulty doctors have in the emergency room, sorting out which drug is toxins are active and killing their patient. If the patient is not able or willing to communicate about the drugs they have been abusing, the doctor is left to work it out for himself. The president of the Houston chapter of the Council on Alcohol and Drugs commented, “Ultimately, if you keep doing this long enough, people die. That’s the outcome other than recovery.”

Derry Hallmark, Director of Admissions at Narconon Arrowhead in Oklahoma, just a few hours north of Dallas, agreed. “The only three outcomes of addiction are death, prison or sobriety. Here at Narconon Arrowhead, we offer our Texan neighbors a chance to choose life and sobriety with our long-term recovery program.”

In 2010, fewer than 37,000 people in Texas found a rehab facility to help them with their recovery. But according to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (2007 edition), more than 1.7 million people were addicted to drugs or alcohol and needed the help.

The Narconon Arrowhead facility has been serving Texans in need of recovery for more than a decade. The large facility overlooks the largest lake in Oklahoma, Lake Eufaula, providing those in recovery with a pleasant view while they tend to the job of turning their lives around.

“We serve people in need of rehab from all parts of the United States,” added Mr. Hallmark. “But we understand the need for rehab and drug prevention in our neighbor to the south and so send our staff to schools and clubs in Texas to provide drug education as often as possible. And our doors are always open to those looking for an alternative to Twelve Step or conventional rehabs that may prescribe addictive drugs as part of their treatment.”

No drugs are ever administered as drug treatment at Narconon Arrowhead. Instead, nutritional supplements, time in a sauna, life skills training and other unique offerings prove to be effective. Narconon Arrowhead is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) and has met or exceeded the state requirements since 1992.

For more information on the Narconon Arrowhead drug rehab program, call 1-800-468-6933.